Silver Horcrux
by dramioneshipper
Summary: Harry, Hermione and Ron are looking for Horcruxes...but two others join their quest, will their help be welcome? DMHG all the way HPGW, and RW? Love is the answer, always. T just in case...right now its K, but soon...
1. Chapter 1

**Well, this is a new story I wrote for the contest "write the first pages of HP7" by mugglenet. I did not make the cut, but since I still love this story and intend to continue it, I thought, why not? So, here you go!**

_What a strange time has come, when madmen lead the blind. (King Lear)_

It was a strange sight for Hermes. Ever since Percy Weasley had freed him, he had wandered across the English countryside, ever flying, never resting. He hadn't seen a human for four months. That was why that night was so strange. Gazing at the blurry silhouettes on the deserted path, he was for the first time oblivious to the sounds of the night, the wind sweeping through the branches of the trees, the wood creaking, and the mice scrambling across the dusty road. His golden eyes pierced through the darkness, trying to figure out who would be in Derbyshire, in the middle of September, in the deep of the night.

There were three figures. They spoke in hushed whispers, even though nobody was around to hear them. Suddenly, the full moon peeked out from under a cloud and illuminated the figures a brief instant.

Just a tiny, microscopic part of a second.

But it was all Hermes needed to recognize the red hair dominant in the Weasley family. He hooted once more and flew after them, circling over their heads. He decided to go the moment Hermione spoke up. He had better things to do than to listen to petty teenage problems. If he only knew.

"Harry, why exactly are we here? There doesn't seem to be anyone around and why would V-Voldemort hide a horcrux in a _Derbyshire_?"

"We're not here for a horcrux. We owe a visit to…and old friend of ours."

Hermione shrugged and kept walking. If Harry was going to visit someone in the middle of nowhere, in the middle of the _night_, what was she to do or say about it? Ron, however, looked slightly green at this idea, and he spoke up for the first time that night:

"Did he really send you an owl? Saying…you know what?"

"Ron, trust me. He's changed. He realized the consequences of his actions. He knows it was wrong and he knew it even before Dumbledore died." Harry's voice faltered at that last bit. But he kept his composure. Losing Sirius beforehand had toughened him up, and he now knew that moping around was not going to change anything.

The trio went ahead on the moonlit path, occasionally stumbling over the random stone, or tensing when hearing an owl hoot, when a loud "CRACK!", followed by another smaller one made Harry and Ron jump and wheel around, while Hermione just smiled and kept walking.

" Well, hello, Ginny." she said calmly, as if welcoming her for tea. Harry stared at Hermione.

"What? You-"

"You couldn't leave her behind, not Ginny. You know how she is…she wanted to do something other than stay around at school knowing you were out searching for Horcruxes to destroy your arch-enemy. So I told her where we'd be."

"Did you tell her what we were _doing_ tonight?"

"Well, I couldn't, could I? I didn't know. Apparently only precious Ron knew!"

"He was with me when I got the owl!"

"Break it up you two! Said a very frustrated Ginny from behind them, "look, Harry, we won't be together, or he'll go after me like you said last year, but I'm going with you lot as a friend, and trust me, you'll need my help."

"How so? Asked Ron who was not too keen on letting his little sister join in the "fun"

"Well, for one, can any of you pull a Bat-Bogey hex as good as mine?" the trio laughed and Ginny took that as her cue to join in the walk.

After a few steps, Ron and Hermione stopped abruptly, leaving Harry and Ginny to take a few steps alone before realizing the change. Ron looked around and asked Ginny what the second "CRACK!" had been. She smiled and addressed Harry:

"You have another ardent follower from Hogwarts, and he wanted to tag along, so I took him here."

"Not…Colin? Please tell me it's not Colin…"

"No! Someone…smaller."

"Mister Harry Potter sir! Dobby is much honored to be in his presence again!"

There, Harry drew the line. He convinced Dobby to return to Hogwarts saying he would be the official House Elf guard, and his duty was to protect the elves if Hogwarts was attacked again. Dobby reluctantly agreed and popped out of sight.

The now quarto strode on, Hermione smiling to herself as Harry and Ginny sneaked glances and Ron remained beautifully oblivious of the situation.

After a while, they arrived at a small mound of earth, and Harry started walking around it, looking for something none of them could see. Finally, with a "HA!" he pointed his wand to a twig and, now perfected in non-verbal spells, needed no incantation as a beam of light shot out of his wand and ignited the slender, brittle, piece of wood.

There was a low rumble and a door appeared, steps leading down into the black hole. Harry looked up at Hermione and said "Ladies first", his lips curling into a smile. Hermione beamed, happy that the _boys_ had finally learnt some manners-or had enough confidence in her to let her go down first-, threw her now finally tamed and sleek hair, after the potion Fleur had given her at the wedding, over her shoulder, pulled out her wand, lit it with a perfect non-verbal lumos spell, and stepped into the stairway.

As the group clambered down the worn steps, a snake slithered next to them. Ron blanched and said in a stammering voice:

"I don't like snakes…"

At his words the step Hermione was on turned into a slide and she flew down the hole, leaving three shocked teenagers behind her. She landed into a small room, lit brightly by blue torches, flat on her stomach. She picked herself up, and looked around at her surroundings while hearing the sounds of her friends sliding down the long chute.

"Glad you made it" stated a bored, drawling voice.

Hermione swung around, her eyes full of dread, and saw him. Sitting on a chair, in the only dark corner of the room, his feet propped carelessly up on a table, was the one and only, Draco Malfoy.

**A/N: So? How was it? Please read and review! And here is a cute little trivia question (again, the idea is from IcyCrystal) for you to answer in your reviews!**

What would your house (or school, with BeauxBatons and Durmstrang) be? And most importantly, why?

**Kiss**

**MARINE**


	2. The Dragon Joins

**Hey all! I'm sorry I didn't update for a while, but I'm really trying to write this story well, and in accordance to the character's personalities. Therefore, It takes me longer to update than The Phoenix's Call (which is a good story too, go read it! its DMHG as well). So, here we go for this chapter!**

Chapter 2:

Hermione shot a glare at the boy who was sitting so comfortably on the uncomfortable looking chair. She stood up and brushed the dust off of her robes, while waiting for her friends who were trying to make their way down the chute without actually sliding on it. A few seconds later they just gave up and slid down, toppling over each other inside the room under the disdainful eye of Draco Malfoy. As they brushed the dust of _their_ robes, Hermione grabbed Harry's sleeve and hissed in his ear:

"Har_ry_, Malfoy's here!"

"I know, Mione." Harry did not seemed surprised. Neither did Ron. Hermione shut her mouth and glared at the two boys. She did _not_ like them knowing something she didn't. She stamped on Ron's foot to vent out her anger, causing him to yelp in pain.

Harry, Ron, Ginny and Hermione joined Draco around the stone table. Hermione narrowed her eyes and stared Malfoy down. 'Murderer' she thought.

"Would you like something to drink? Tea, perhaps?" Malfoy asked, frigidly polite. Hermione stood up.

"No, let me. I just love to make tea and be the hostess. I'll find what I need in the kitchen, which, I believe is through that door." Draco nodded and she was on her way.

Harry and Ron exchanged a bewildered and anxious glance: Hermione _never_ liked to play housewife. If anything, she made them do everything during summers, and if it weren't for her ardent position in S.P.E.W, they were sure she would have about twenty house-elves.

The group sat in an awkward silence until Hermione came back with a tray laden with tea. She gave each of her friends a cup with a blank expression, but she left Malfoy to reach for his own cup. Draco purposely gulped half of his tea with a smug look and Hermione glowered at him. Then, Harry turned on the blonde boy with the ever-present irksome smirk.

"What did you want to talk about? Spill, and make it quick."

Draco clumsily tipped his cup over and a bit of tea leaked out of it. "I was under the Imperius curse the whole of last year. Well, not the whole of it, since it doesn't work in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, some spell or other by Slytherin. I finally broke through it the day Dumbledore was murdered. I wasn't going to kill him, you know, Potter, you saw me lower my wand."

They sat in silence once again. Everyone except for Draco and Hermione looked skeptic. Draco had no expression on his face. Hermione looked dumbfounded.

"But why are you telling _us_?"

"I can help you. I know where two of the Horcruxes are."

Ron asked Harry: "How do we know he's telling the truth?"

"True." added Ginny.

Hermione, sporting a small smirk, reached inside her robes and took out a small glass vial with a clear liquid in it.

"Veritaserum, Hermione style. Dragonsbane atones the effects and peppermint adds a little twist. My dear Malfoy, while you are aware of what is happening and can talk without answering questions, you cannot lie. Plus, you had to do everything we told you to do for about five minutes. Those effects have died down now."

"Sneaky. How in the world did you end up in Gryffindor?" Malfoy asked her.

"The Sorting Hat tried. He said he was all for it, and that Gryffindor was the only alternate even though I was smart. I told him if he didn't put me in Gryffindor then and there I knew a wonderfull little spell that would burn him to ashes."

"That only makes it worse."

"Not really, since it was a brave thing to do."

"Oh, yeah, go attack a 500 year old hat, that's brave."

Hermione explained that the altered version of Veritaserum would wear off in a half an hour's time. She scolded Harry and Ron for trying to ask Malfoy embarrassing questions, and went on to ask him:

"So you want us to take you with us?"

"Its the only you'd beat him."

"Can we have a moment alone? Just Ron, Harry, Ginny and I?" asked Hermione after having paused to reflect a bit.

Malfoy nodded and stepped out of the room into the kitchen, leaving the quartet to talk on their own. He wasn't about to admit it to them, but he really wanted to follow them. It really was his only option: He wasn't going back to school, because of the whole killing Dumbledore deal, the Dark Lord probably wanted to rip him limb from limb by now, not only because of breaking through the Imperius and turning his back on the Dark side, but also because of the fact that he had been able to remain hidden and not be caught by him. His Father was in jail, he couldn't go to the Manor without endangering his Mother...The only thing he could do was what he had wanted to do all along, help defeat Lord Voldemort.

He didn't bow to anyone! Even if he had to team up with two blood traitors, a mudblood, and Harry bloody Potter for goodness's sake, he would bring him down. Draco picked up the quill he had stolen from the Dark Lord before having to hide and fingered it. It didn't work. Not even with ink inside. Trust him, he had tried many ways. That's why he knew it was more than just a quill...He would have to tell one of the Golden Group about it. Probably Granger, she would know what to do. She knew everything.

He relapsed in thought. He hated killing and torturing people for the sake of it, or because they had a different lineage. He was fine with the fact that muggles and muggle-borns were inferior, but that was no reason to go off and kill them all! They made the world go round: without them, who would take the mundane jobs the Purebloods needed so much: cashiers, cleaning people, servants, coffee-makers and all? A lot of them were very smart, and it would be a loss to the wizarding world if they were to die. Take Granger for example.

Actually you couldn't take Granger. But still, that girl could end up finding the cure to lycanthropy, genius that she was. Draco was jolted out of his thoughts by the door opening with a BANG! The Weasel Girl was standing there. She glanced at him, let out a "You can come back now" while giving an appraising glance to the kitchen, and went back to her seat.

When he had retaken a seat at the cold stone table, Harry faced him and said:

"You're in. We leave tomorrow morning"

"All right, there are two rooms available, Potter and Weasley can have one, Granger and Weasley girl can share the other."

They stood up and followed Draco to their rooms. They were very basic: two beds of stone with plain mattresses and sheets. He left Harry and Ron to their room and then left with the two girls to direct them to their own. Before Hermione could follow Ginny in the room, Draco took her gently by the elbow, so as not to alarm her, or she would have screeched and drawn attention.

"I need to talk to you, Granger. Alone."

She nodded and yelled to Ginny that she would be back soon, she just had to use the bathroom. Draco and her entered a private room, and Hermione put a silencing charm on the walls so they wouldn't be eavesdropped upon. Then, she turned to him. He was sitting on a green sofa, and with a small jerk of his head, invited her to sit down as well. As she settled, she asked him with a glare:

"So?"

He shifted uneasily under her gaze.

"I have a few questions."

"I figured. Go ahead."

"First of all, where are we going, second of all what do you guys know, thirdly, what Horcruxes do you have, and finally, what did you do to your hair?"

Hermione blushed slightly at the last question as Draco looked in awe at the smooth chocolate curls that had replaced the bushy mess she had before.

"Well, we're heading to Russia next. We have reason to believe that one of the Horcruxes is in Saint Petersburg. We know, well, we only know that the Horcruxes did not leave Europe. We had destroyed the Gaunt ring and the Chamber of Secrets diary before going "questing" as Harry puts it, and we found the Hufflepuff Cup, _while_ "questing". We haven't destroyed it, as we don't know how, but I'm sure I'll find out. And my hair, thank you, you like it?" She finished with a mischievous grin, her eyes sparkling in the firelight. "What do _you_ know?" she added.

"You're right about St Petersburg, I know where to find the Ravenclaw Pendant, and I think I have a way of knowing how to destroy the Horcruxes. I'm going to need your help on that, but we'll do that tomorrow." They sat in silence for a while, watching the fire spark. When only glowing embers were left of it, Hermione finally whispered and broke the silence.

"We better get some sleep."

Draco nodded and stood up as she left the room. He went in the opposite direction she went, to get to his bedroom. The brunette girl crept back to her room and snuggled into her covers. Amazingly, the uncomfortable looking bed was actually very snug.

'The wonders of magic' she thought as she drifted off to sleep, lulled by Ginny's soft and regular snores.

It was Malfoy who woke her up. She heard her voice distantly as well as the opening and shutting of her door.

"Potter says wake up, we apparate to Petersburg right after breakfast."

She moaned as she rolled over in her bed, her legs tangled in the sheets and her mass of curls obscuring her closed eyes, and sighed. Then, she groggily slid open her honey eyes.

"Hello again world."

She rolled off of her bed onto the cold stone floor. The frigidness of the floor waking the second half of her up, she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Damn the sun. Damn Malfoy. Damn Harry. SLEEEEEP!" after her little rant, she got dressed and headed back to where they had been sitting the night before, assuming that breakfast would be there. The forbidding room looked a bit homier with her friends and her enemy huddled around a tasty looking breakfast. She sat down and got a cup of coffee from Ginny. Hermione looked at the lavish food on the table, and then shot a questioning glance at Harry.

"Ginny is magic in the kitchen, really should have brought her with us from the start." He answered before biting in a piece of toast.

"Had the proper training." Ginny said, shrugging.

"Well, it sure changes from the weirdo grub Hermione's been cooking." added Ron.

Hermione sent him a withering glance.

"That was uncalled for Ronniekins."

After giggling a bit, they ate in silence for a few minutes. Ron asked a question, disrupting everyone's eating time. He asked it in an airy manner, but they could all tell he had been pondering this for a while.

"What exactly are we looking for in St Petersburg?"

Harry sighed and shrugged. To everyone's surprise, it was Malfoy who answered the question.

"The locket. Regulus Black, traitor to the Dark Lord, had a passion, well, more of an obsession, with the mystery of the last of the Romanovs. Anastasia. He left the locket in her keeping. She lives hidden in the Dark part of St Petersburg. You see, she was a witch. Alexandra was a pure-blooded witch,and she didn't want to have only muggle children. Since Nicholas was a royal muggle, she couldn't have any wizarding children, so she had an affair with a wizard: Ivan Goldberg."

Ginny choked on her latte. Harry dropped his toast inside his tea. Ron froze in the motion of buttering his toast. Hermione seemed unfazed.

"We didn't need the whole _history_ of Anastasia's line."

"_Au contraire_ dearie, it is very important. I'm sure you know why. Anastasia was pure-blooded, and a witch. She could escape the revolutionaries, but her family couldn't, though Alexandra tried. Anastasia has a descendance. They're very secret though, the Goldberg-Romanovs. It is said they are no more."

"And...you know how to get where Anastasia is?"

Draco shook his head.

"I do." answered Hermione in a small voice.

"You would." said Draco.

Again, Harry, Ron and Ginny went into surprise mode.

"What does he mean, Mione?" asked Ron dumbly. Hermione averted her friend's gaze. Draco looked from her to the others incredulously.

"He means I read a lot. That's how I found out, by reading." The others seemed satisfied, but Draco looked at her suspiciously.

When they had done, the headed up the stairs. Harry, Ron and Ginny went ahead, but Draco held Hermione back by the elbow. Pulling her into a darker corner, he whispered hastily in her ear.

"You mean they don't know?"

"No, they don't, and I won't let them find out. Not yet. How did you know?"

"Reading up on them, looking at you, and of course, your wand."

"Stalker."

"Careful out there, you know why."

Hermione nodded and said.

"I'm always careful."

And she turned and climbed the stairs in a flurry of chocolate hair.

**A/N: Im sorry because I'm so slow to update...I hope you like it, because I'm doing my best. Surprisingly, this doesn't get half as much reviews as my other story, The Phoenix's Call...make sure you read it if you like this one! Eeek im repeating myself but I dont have the courage to go up and erase it.**

**Muchos kisses**

**emerald green, royal blue, or scarlet?**

**Vewy important question, its my prom dress we're talking about!**

**lol**


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